US lawmakers attack Apple for song takedowns in Chinese government censorship effort

AppleInsider:

Apple’s decision to pull songs from its Apple Music service in China by pro-democracy musicians has come under fire from US lawmakers, suggesting Apple should not be taking part in what amounts to censorship by the Chinese government.

On Tuesday, it was reported Apple had removed a song called “Ren Jian Dao” from Apple Music in China that referenced the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre. A cover of the song, translated as “Path of Man,” was also taken down from Tencent’s QQ Music service, with the takedowns considered an indication the government was cracking down on pro-democracy media.

The move has led to members of the U.S. Congress to criticize Apple for its role in the government-led crackdown.

Apple’s need for Chinese approval lends itself to easy criticism when it does things like this.